| Summary: | 594 The North Dakota Indians St. Louis April 16, 1831, and reached the mouth of the Bad river in South Dakota on June 19th. The following year the Yellowstone ascended to the mouth of the Yellowstone River, thus demonstrating the claim long made by army engineers that the Missouri was navigable that far. On June 1, 1835, the Assiniboine, another early steamer on the upper Missouri was burned after being grounded near Sibley Island South of Bismarck and all her cargo lost. The Omega, the Chippewa, the Deer Fodge and the Far West were other noted steamers on the upper Missouri. At one time there were some ten packet lines operating with Bismarck as headquarters. The docks were just below the Northern Pacific bridge. In early days when the railroads had not yet pushed westward to the Missouri river boats were the main means of transportation and two rival lines the Powers or "Block P" and the Coul- son line were engaged in competition for mastery of the river traffic. A competition which was to end a few years later when the railroad made river travel comparatively slow and unprofitable. Brawny river captains who were shipmasters as truly as those who sailed deep water are listed as commanders of the various steamers. These lines of noble boats plying the stream, makes possible the military and trading posts of the ever-extending frontier. The Benton Packet Company still carried on for many years after the other companies had withdrawn. D. W. Maratta and I. P. Baker, were their early and long time managers| It operated successfully a half dozen boats between the capital city and points up and down the river, which had no other transportation facilities, and it handled large amounts of coal, grain and machinery. A ferry between Bismarck and Mandan was operated until the fall of 1922. Ferries are still operated at several points along the Missouri. Some of the best known Missouri river captains were Grant- Marsh, Joseph LaBarge, Wm. Howard, John Grunsolis, C. T. Atkins, Wm. Gould, A. Johnson, Joseph Pecto, Sam Townsend. Wm. S. Sims, J. M. Belk and the four Todd brothers. The Conquest of the Missouri by Joseph Mills Hanson, is tak- Scanned with a Zeutschel Zeta book scanner at 300 dpi. Edited with Multi-Page TIFF Editor.
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